GROTZ: Returning to Eagles right call for Bill Musgrave

In this June 20, 2012 photo, former Minnesota Vikings NFL football offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave addresses the media in Eden Prairie, Minn. Musgrave has shown plenty of imagination to get an offense with many limitations moving. (Associated Press)

Then head coach Ray Rhodes knew he was on the way out. He was told his contract would not be renewed weeks before the Birds finished 3-13.

Current Eagles running backs coach Duce Staley, who led the ’98 squad in rushing, almost fell over laughing checking out the old practice scripts.

“That was crazy, man,” Staley said. “It is crazy to see the way the league has played and what you were thinking. Some of the stuff we did back then in practice isn’t even close to what we do now.”

Musgrave, 46, always seems to land on his feet. When quarterbacks coach Bill Lazor became offensive coordinator of the Miami Dolphins, Birds offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur encouraged head coach Chip Kelly to bring Musgrave aboard. Shurmur, in his stint as head coach of the Cleveland Browns, tried to hire Musgrave.

“I’ve known Bill a long time, admired his work and I think he’s established a good relationship with quarterbacks,” Shurmur said. “The most important thing as coaches is that we all stay on the same page and that we’re always telling the quarterbacks the same thing. I learned that working for Andy Reid. Philosophically Bill and I and Chip are all the same. So I think he will really help.”

Musgrave is showing the physical stress of 15 years as an assistant coach and four years as an NFL player. He’s more wrinkled than 70-year-old Eagles tight ends coach Ted Williams.

Musgrave quarterbacked Oregon and in 1991 was a fourth-round draft pick of the Dallas Cowboys.

Williams and Musgrave had offices across a very narrow hall from each other at Veterans Stadium. Now they’re part of the Chip Kelly Experience, complete with ear-numbing music. When they’re not working they’re comparing notes and checking out the old practice scripts.

“We embraced when he came here because it was fun when he came in,” Williams said. “I coached against Bill when he played in college. I was at UCLA when he was at Oregon. So our history goes way back. Bill is a fine gentleman. He goes about his business of coaching the right way. And he’s an asset. His approach as a coach was low-key. Kind of the antithesis of Jon Gruden. He was fun to work with.”

Gruden and Sean Payton, who grew up in Marple, worked as Eagles assistant coaches in the cramped Vet. Gruden and Payton would lead the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New Orleans Saints to Super Bowl titles.

Coaching hasn’t been quite so easy for Musgrave. He’s worked for NFL teams with a collective 108-131-1 (.452) overall record in the regular season and 2-4 in the playoffs.

Then again, you have to look at what Musgrave was asked to do. Coming out of the bullpen in that ’98 season with the Eagles, the only play that worked was a Staley run. With Detmer and Peete at quarterback, the Eagles went 2-6 and scored 82 points down the homestretch.

“I learned a lot,” Musgrave said. “I learned a lot about the men on that team. The record wasn’t what any of us had wanted, especially Coach Rhodes. But it was great to work for Ray-Bob and be around those players. They never quit fighting and stayed competitive throughout.”

Kelly found out what Musgrave could do in Week 15 last season. The Vikings were without their top two running backs, including Adrian Peterson, their best player. Quarterback Matt Cassel threw for 382 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Vikings to a 48-30 victory.

Musgrave left with an appreciation of Kelly’s concepts.

“It’s very interesting to learn the intricacies of the system,” Musgrave said. “I’m far from mastering it. But I’m learning a bunch each and every day. It’s a system that thinks players first and then plays. Which is brilliant. It doesn’t mean we’re always going to run a certain play just because it’s worked in the past but we’re going to take the strengths of our players and customize and tailor the system to fit them.”

In Musgrave, the Eagles have a guy who delights in customizing the offense to players.

In the Eagles, who sent quarterback Nick Foles and running back LeSean McCoy to the Pro Bowl, Musgrave has players who he can open up the playbook for.